Too Jagged To Hold by Kristen Hornung

TW: Rape and trauma mentions. A brave collection of poetry inspired after rape and the trauma following it showing the fragility of life years on after the traumatic event occurs. The collection also looks at the cycle of life and loss, family and expectations and reality of your own situation. It was deeply moving emotive poetry and you could really immerse yourself in feeling everything as you read through the collection, especially if you know anyone who has faced trauma, it was so honest and open it really was a courageous collection to write and share and I know it will help so many survivors feel so less alone reading this, realising others do, sadly, understand the same depth of pain and trauma.

Dining with the Enemy by Winnie Nantongo

This book perfectly captures how self doubt can make you question your self worth and have you feeling low as well as dealing with depression and anxiety as well which can all too often arrive hand in hand an unwelcome trio to wreck havoc on your mind. Regrets, was such a truthful loaded poem I think everyone will find something to relate to in it about feeling the need to change to try to fit in when we shouldn't The Calm After, all about self love and embracing who we are, what we like and don't like unashamedly too really sums up how in trying to people please we can lose part pof our identity too easily too. A really great collection with many points you can relate to easily in daily life experiences.

The Day Without You Book 3 by Maria T. Anderson

This next book in the series deals with the immediate aftermath of losing her new husband from the previous book and their journey to marriage from the first so do read those two before this one for sure to continue the story! Grief wants a place to sit with you, it's in the mundade everyday places and objects surrounding you in and around the house you shared, Maria really captures how grief exists after loss in items and moments, everyday life can feel a real challenge to adapt to and grief can consume you until you can live with it. This series is a great prose poetry story of how you can fall in love and live with the challenge grief and loss presents too.

The Smile With Tears Behind It Bride In Black Book 5 by Maria T. Anderson

I've been really enjoying this series and now a few books into it, the story of life after grief begins to settle into a new normal happens and reflections occur, bittersweet still in every day moments of life. How home is now just a house love echoes in items, ghosts of memory and words written are left behind from the loved one passed on. Also touching on how smiling is hard to feel real and not like a ghost, gaps in photo's where they should be beside you, clothing you wear and pieces they never got to pass opinion on you choose and wear sometimes altering your future self to deflect how you feel after the loss, something I relate to as well. Utterly relatable and heartbreaking at the same time in real life capturing how grief can effect you as time goes on and life continues around you it feels.

Memento Mori by Kay Haven

This was a moving collection of poetry about death, grief and loss in any way where love was involved. Some stand out poems to me were: If These Walls Could Speak, how places, rooms and items hold so many memories, observed by the surroundings. The Five Sonnets of Grief, was sad and beautiful in the storytelling poetic recount of how losing the love of your life leads you through a dark isolating path. Reflections, was a beautiful poem about the art our bodies wear and how each person views us differently especially to how we view ourselves. Artists Never Heal, about how writers and poets, singers etc, will all draw on the feelings of pain time and time again to create beautiful art from the pain. It was a deeply moving collection and utterly relatable if you've faced grief and loss.

A Piece Of Me by D.E Bivins

This collection of poems was about how we loose little pieces of us in different experiences and how it changes and shapes us. Some stand out poems to me were: Empty Words, about trust broken by promises unkept and betrayal and the inability to go back and trust as you once did again. We Live, We Die, about the fragility of life and lessons we learn through this experience of living. Words, about owning your power to share your experiences in poems or stories. Social Media, was an open poem about how life has changed for the worse as we disconnect in person and try to connect online keeping distance and hoping on chance of connection instead. A lot to a little and Change, how you can live through times where you had everything to having nothing you expected. This was a collection to feel how life transforms us over time.

The Bureau of The Betrayed by Skyla Springer

This poetry collection was both tender and cutting with beautiful rhyming poems and stanza's telling stories of relationships falling apart and the conclusion from the actions how it can leave you reeling, aching and feeling so deeply. Two stand out poems to me were easily: Love Unconditioned, reminds me of the song Softly by Alayna, about self love first before romantic love. The Fragile Wings Of Trust, about retrying after everything with an ex who cheated and moving on healing and thinking of a future trying with someone new not letting the past get to you so badly forever. A brilliant little poetry book that was so well written, highly recommend reading especially if you can relate to being cheated on sadly!

Almost Winter, Almost Hope: Poetry about feeling alone by S. Avery

This poetry collection captures the beauty of dark and light in the seasons in particular, the winter and how Christmas can feel lonely and hopful at the same time in different way for different reasons. Some fantastic poems which stood out to me were: First Frost, about the world slowing down forcibly by the first bad weather stretching. Hollow songs, in particular how overplayed the same Christmas songs can be to leave you indifferent to them anymore. Three chairs, is a poem that hits deeply about the echo of loss at dinner especially so at Christmas. December Silence, about feeling everything, the weight of the unsaid lingering between family. Wish List, was a beautiful poem of the real gifts being feelings and are not easily brought gifts wrapped. Short Days, about the fragility of daylight in winter. Holiday Bruises, about how the holiday can linger and leave painful reminders of how the season has changed. It is a beautiful collection of poetry and makes you see the winter and festive season in a new light from different perspectives of hope, joy, grief, love and healing.

Things That Should've Stayed In My Notes App by Stacey Nicole Douglas

This was a great collection about loving and caring for someone despite them making bad choices and believing themselves to be worthless. Notes unsent, that tell the questioning truths of why someone cut you out of their life, how it hurt and they seem unaffected on the surface level while to you it cut deeply from caring about them so much. Living up to the title completely, it was a deeply moving collection, feeling the care, pain, hurt and still an undertone of hope at times running through the collection.

Heartbreak Royalty by Havilah Mae

This was a poetic look at life as a relationship leaves trauma from a connection being less than loving and adoring instead the reflection looking back over the relationship showing the negatives over the positives and how it can leave you wondering and questioning why. A delicate collection of poetry of the ways control and emotional abuse from a partner can linger.

All The Bridges I Could Not Burn by Autumn Graves

This was a great collection of poetry looking at the breakup of a couple and feelings towards the end of that relationship and the impact it has. Breaking Points, how as good a relationship is it all falls apart and you're left feeling hurt in the aftermath of it all. The Things I Lost Trying To Keep You, from basic yet essential things, like sleep to deeper core values and feelings. The Last Bridge, about being strong enough to leave and not go back, ever. Aftermath, again following a breakup and just surviving the ensuing silence or emptiness around you after it ends. This poetry collection will definitely have some relatable points to you if you're dealing or have dealt with losing someone you love in any way.

All The Ways I Love by Autumn Graves

This collection details all the thoughts and feelings you can experience growing up feeling you're wrong from others judgements being cast onto or directed towards you. A few stand out poems to me were, Middle Ground, detailing how people can try to judge you one way or the other. Trying to label you like in the poem, Coming Out, again, how you have to sometimes have to explain your sexuality multiple times to people over and over again trying to justify why you feel how you do. They Ask For Proof, an open look at how people will question how for sure you are knowing how you identify how you say not seeing that being alive and feeling is actually enough. Choosing Me, Every Time, was a great companion poem to the latter above, showing how every time chosing yourself, is pleasing yourself as people come and go whereas you're stuck with yourself for life. It was a great in depth collection looking fully at the cycle of crushes, loving, learning and accepting who you are despite what others may think.

Scoops Of Love by S. M. Lucky

This was a great collection of mini stories set in an ice cream factory and showing the joy that creating new flavours and ranges can bring. Some standout duo's stories in the collection to me were: Tessa and Jackson, they were a fun and flirty duo in their flavour feud. Bea and Dean, who were both learning to cope with their separate grief experiences. There were lots of opposites attract stories, especially Eli and Penny, such a cute story and overall the whole collection makes a great sweet read to leave you smiling, guaranteed.

The Words I Have Yet To Say Out Loud by Ieisha Brown

This collection was a really good deep look as the complexities of life as we journey through it. Showing how you can feel like an outsider and isolated, yet be surrounded by people as you don't fit in by liking the same things they do. How childhood trauma can make you feel fearful of fitting in or never feeling you've found your place and trying to be strong yet, feeling weak inside deep down and how trauma makes you grow up fast having your childhood less happy more sad times. One really deep hitting poem about worth and realising how others treat you initially sets the tone of the relationship from the start and know where to not waste your energy alike a poem about friendships and relationships showing the complex ways friendship breakups can effect you even deeper than a romantic relationship it was really hard hitting because I relate so much to those aspects and think many of us can, it was a truly stunning collection to read.

At My Darkest by KLH

TW for abuse mentions in the book. This is a bold and brave collection of poetry touching on childhood sexual abuse and anxiety as well as about how social media is as toxic as bullying to your face is. Also discussing how generations of relatives expect us to just get on with things as they were, not discuss or break them The book also touches on alcohol amd and effects of binge drinking and addiction in families too and the effects on generations. If I Had A Son and My Daughter, were two powerful poems about teaching life lessons to be kind and respectful. There is an awesome poem playing on childhood toys Barbie and Polly Pocket which was so cleverly written about life at face value and Barbie's infamous Dream house seeming impressive at face value but how in life behind closed doors nothing is as expected, a standout poem to me from many poetry collections I've read.

If You Asked Me Again By Grinn Expressions

This is such a beautiful book all about learning and falling in love with another. I Made You A Playlist was a standout poem to me about sharing music also I Didn't Fill The Silence too about being comfortable in each other's presence needing nothing more than each other. I Folded The Laundry For You, too, such an every day observational poem about the everyday mundane tasks being little ways of showing love and care to each other in just helping out get tasks done. Such a great book of observational poetry from everyday life in love along with the other part/half of the story told through these poems which I will review separately too!

The Day He Was Still Here Book 1 by Maria T. Anderson

This is a beautiful poetry book telling the story of a bride to be up to her wedding day told in prose poetry the story unfolded beautifully in moments of everyday life up until the big day and kept me hooked reading until finished! It is the first of quite a good long series of nine books so far which I will definitely be reading now I'm hooked and intrigued to read the rest of the story especially as this first one end in a cliffhanger so I'm straight off to read book number two now!

The Way I Bleed by Mirabela Căpîlna

This poetry collection tackles some great subjects in depth, particularly loneliness or feeling alone or not enough, especially the Dedication, opening the collection summed up the book is inclusive for anyone if any age, gender or situation and at author after note, in particular telling her story, utterly heartbreaking but inspirational to get through to be in her position now writing after everything, fantastic! Alone on purpose about being solo doing what you want trying to be strong, you just want peace and being alone provides that, so relatable! Almost Pretty was a fantastic poem about how as teenager you can learn to wear makeup as war paint to face those people who want to belittle you for your flaws especially if you've experienced bullying. If You See Me, was easily the most relatable, in a busy world one person seeing you, stopping to speak beyond pleasentries can change your life I know it's how I met one of my closest friends that way. The Hour That Knows You, about being unable to rest as the dark night looms and thoughts consume your mind, again simple concept and utterly relatable. Battlefield Lullaby, to me is talking about depression, I relate to it about feeling you're drowning in life, especially when you're a teenager. For me the book completely captures life's trials thrown at you to deal with, open, honest and relatable.

Breathe My Heart by L C Raker

This was a great book of life and love observations which I could really relate to in certain situations like being the observant one, not mingling a lot just reading the room, Distance As An Excuse, too, especially hit hard and talk of people playing games in love too. An all round great look at relationships and heartbreak and a good length to read in one sitting to sit and process and reflect your own feelings and reflect on relatable remembered times in your life too.

I Heart Hawaii I Heart Book 8 by Lindsey Kelk

Wow what a series and journey these books have now been! In this supposed finale to the series though again I hope not, we find Angela in her new job under Cici at her new company only leaving baby Alice with Alex so she can get back into her old life with a job.

However after Jenny offers her a trip to Hawaii, Alex has an accident and the MOB/mothers of Brooklyn group, a baby parent meet up exclusive elite group push Angela to join after they find out Alex is her husband she finds herself feeling weighed down and leaving it all for Hawaii isn't easy but at least she gets to have some fun, she thinks at first...

After many activities whilst away she comes to realise she's glad to return home but the Mascara press trip does lead her and Jenny to have a heart to heart about IVF and the struggle to get pregnant, there's also a book to be written by Angela if she can as the MOBS get it arranged for her and friendship drama with Jenny after a video being made public...

This one to me had less drama at the beginning and the Hawaii trip started off quite tame and I wasn't feeling it but it did pick up as it is Angela and her zany crew of friends with the best drama coming at the end of their trip. I'm always one to enjoy the more heart to heart moments of books not the drink parts! I loved the twist about the book Angela writes and it's title, that was super clever and full circle and does wrap up like the series is actually definitely now over, though I do hope for more novellas at least, maybe?.. A girl can dream!

Many thanks to the publishers for allowing me to review this book for them!